Thursday, June 19, 2014

THE UNKNOWN ASSASSIN Blog Tour



About Allen:
Allen Zadoff is the author of the THE UNKNOWN ASSASSIN series as well as several acclaimed novels includingFOOD, GIRLS, AND OTHER THINGS I CAN'T HAVE, winner of the Sid Fleischman Humor Award and a YALSA Popular Paperback for Young Adults. Allen's action-packed series debut, I AM THE WEAPON (formerly BOY NOBODY), is a page-turning thriller about a teenage assassin that has already been optioned for film by Sony Pictures & Overbrook Entertainment. The book was featured in the Los Angeles Times' Summer Reading guide and has received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly and VOYA. Kirkus Reviews called I AM THE WEAPON "fast, furious, and fun." Look for the sequel, I AM THE MISSION, beginning in June 2014.  Allen is a graduate of Cornell University and the Harvard University Institute for Advanced Theatre Training. His training as a super spy, however, has yet to be verified. Visit Allen on the web at www.allenzadoff.com.


Allen kindly answered some questions for me:
1. Did you do any hands on research (spy training) for the book and if so, can you tell us about it.
Most of my training was top secret, and I cannot talk about it here. I can tell you I went to a pistol range with a shooting coach, and got a feeling for the world of weapons. Ironically, The Unknown Assassin does not like guns. He finds them inefficient for what he does, which is to befriend the children of his targets so he can quietly assassinate their parents. So his greatest weapon is his mind, because he has to fit in wherever he goes, camouflage his true intentions, and be smart and strategic enough to accomplish the mission without anyone knowing he was responsible.
I love the idea that his greatest weapon is his mind. Smarts = cool

2. Do you have a favorite action movie? What about Spy movie?
I love the Bourne movies. They are superb. James Bond is another favorite, especially the “modern” Bond with Daniel Craig, where the character is darker and more complicated than in the past.
I love the Bourne movies - they're amazingly good.

3. How many books will there be in the series (please say more than three)
I’m on board for three. If you want more, you’ll have to write to my publisher and demand more. If you’re new to the series, start with I AM THE WEAPON (Book 1, formerly called Boy Nobody). If you’ve already read that, then it’s time for I AM THE MISSION (Book 2).  Book 3 will be out next year.
Excited for a third book

4. Any movie news?
I’ve read the screenplay for the movie, and it’s fantastic. It’s being revised now, and then we’ll see what happens.
Excellent News!

5. What's the best book you're read lately that you think everyone should read?
This is sad to say, but I often don’t read when I’m writing. Novels are amazing, immersive experiences, and I don’t want to hear another author’s voice or style in my head when I’m working. I want my characters to take up all that space. Believe it or not, I’ve been listening to a lot of country music lately.  There is great storytelling in that music. Luke Bryan, Florida Georgia Line, Jake Owen, Blake Shelton, or if you want to go to some deeper places, listen to Lucinda Williams. That’s my suggestion for you ears.
That's exactly why I love country music too - there's always a story.

6. Have you got any library stories?
I’ve got a million of them!  When I was in high school, I began to write short stories, and when I was in the library at school, I’d write long hand and pass pages under the carrels for my friends to read. It was like a black market in short stories, secretly smuggled through the library in folded pages.
HA! Love it

7. Would you ever want to be a spy or assassin?
How do you know I’m not a spy now?
Good point.
About the Books:

I am the Weapon:
I really loved the first book, published under the title Boy Nobody. You can check out my review here. I can't wait to read I am the Mission.

I am the Mission:

HE WAS THE PERFECT ASSASSIN

No name. No past. No remorse. Perfect, that is, until he began to ask questions and challenge his orders. Now The Program is worried that their valuable soldier has become a liability.

And so Boy Nobody is given a new mission. A test of sorts. A chance to prove his loyalty.

His objective: Take out Eugene Moore, the owner of an extremist military training camp for teenagers. It sounds like a simple task, but a previous operative couldn't do it. He lost the mission and is presumed dead. Now our assassin is confident he can finish the job. Quickly.

But when things go awry, Boy Nobody finds himself lost in a mission where nothing is as it seems: not The Program, his allegiances, nor the truth.


The riveting second book in Allen Zadoff's The Unknown Assassin series delivers heart-pounding action and a shocking new twist that makes our hero question everything he has believed.

Check Out the Rest of the Tour Schedule:
Week One:
6/16/2014- FiktshunGuest Post
6/17/2014- New Adult AddictionReview
6/18/2014- By the Book ReviewsReview
6/19/2014- YA Book NerdInterview
6/20/2014- Swoony Boys PodcastGuest Post
Week Two:
6/24/2014- Crossroad ReviewsReview
6/25/2014- The Haunting of Orchid ForsythiaReview
6/26/2014- Curling Up With A Good BookGuest Post

6/27/2014- Parajunkee's ViewInterview

Contest:
a Rafflecopter giveaway

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